


Story Cache

by DustToDust



Category: Naruto
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 19:20:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 4,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28658616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DustToDust/pseuds/DustToDust
Summary: A repository for drabbles.
Kudos: 8





	1. Artist's Block- Sai, Team 7 & 10

**Author's Note:**

> Many of these will have been previously posted under a different pen name. Think I'm going to turn this one into the dumping ground for all the non-shippy drabbles. Ships and one shots will likely be posted on their own to make sorting by character easier.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a pointless bit about sparring set early in the days of Sai being introduced to the manga.

~

Sai stared at the blank scroll, idly wondering what he should draw. It wasn't a good idea for him to just keep reusing the same forms every time. As an artist and a shinobi, predictability was a deadly mistake. It left him in a bit of a situation though. 

Wolves, lions, and dragons were right out. Sai had been using those forms far too much lately. Snakes were right out for obvious reasons, and --as much as he'd like to-- so were boars for less obvious reasons. Bears were too simple, not enough of a challenge. Dogs were too close to wolves for the untrained eye, and all good artists always took into account the stupidity of their audience.

He drew a simple line and stared at it for a moment. No sudden flash of inspiration came to him though, and he was left with a useless line on the scroll. He thinks this must be close to what vexation feels like.

"Sai!" Sakura's shout interrupted his thoughts quite neatly.

"Yes?" Sai smiled and looked up at his teammates. As usual, they did not respond as favorably as his books had suggested they should. A little understandable as neither of them even bothered to look his way.

Naruto took the time to send one harassed and battered looking clone over to yell, "Could you get off your ass and help!?"

"But you look like you're doing well," Sai said looking over the field. Sakura had a rather painful grip on Ino's hair. Ino returned the favor by scraping her foot down Sakura's shin, hard. Shadow clones were formed and destroyed in a matter of seconds as a larger than life Chouji pounded away at anything that moved. Shikamaru leaned against a tree between the two separate fights sending shadow tendrils out to trip up Sakura and Naruto when it looked like they were getting the advantage.

Assured that his assessment of the situation wasn't off, Sai went back to his scroll. He drew a second line. It didn't inspire him any more than the first one had. He was considering a third when the scroll was ripped out of his hands and his attention was transferred to his teammates. Going by the scowls and wrinkled foreheads, one much larger than the other, Sai felt confident in labeling the emotion he was seeing as either anger or frustration.

Sai smiled, pleased with himself for his studying was starting to pay off, "Yes, can I help you?"

~

Ino got bored of watching within the first ten minutes and dragged Chouji off to find something to eat. Shikamaru had promptly laid down on the ground to watch clouds. He occasionally sent out a shadow tendril to trip up any of Team 7 who got too close to him in their all out brawl. Later on Kakashi would declare the training a success, but Yamoto would scare the kids shitless regardless.

~


	2. Z Rank- Tsunade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was one area that Konoha excelled in.

Z rank missions were a fairly common practice between villages that were allied. Officially it was excused as a way to facilitate cooperative relations between the villages, and as a not so shady way of inflating revenue. Unofficially it was a way to keep the higher ranked shinobi on their toes, and to give the village that came out on top bragging rights.

Looking at the request from Suna, Tsunade had to admit that her village was getting owned in that area. Not through any lack of ideas on her part. No, it was simply that Sabaku no Gaara was a goldmine for Z missions. One that _any_ village would be hard pressed to match. 

"Shizune," Tsunade paused thoughtfully as she mulled over her choices. Gai would be a good one given his enthusiasm. However, she knew they could do better. 

Tsunade smiled at her assistant, a broad tooth baring grin that made Shizune shiver. "Give this to that Hatake brat."

Gai would've scarred the poor boy for life, which would give her village the advantage. Hatake on the other hand would scar the boy for life _and_ set him up so that he could terrorize his village in an entirely different way. Double points and a bonus for her!

Really, Suna should've known better than to request a sex-ed tutor from Konoha of all places.


	3. Wondering- Sakura

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She tries not to leave herself any time to think.

And some days she wonders. After a particularly hard day of training or during her frequent long hours at the hospital.

Sakura wonders what Naruto is doing. The stiff nail brush stinging as she tries to get the blood out from under her nails. Knowing him he'll be shouting at his sensei to hurry up and teach him more, never mind the fact that he was about to pass out! 

Pink foam clings to the side of the sink as she pours more soap onto her hands.

Sakura wonders what Sasuke is doing. She winces as the brush draws fresh blood to add to the old. Knowing him... There is no knowing him, not since he left. Water flows from the faucet washing her hands clean, she quickly scrubs her eyes with the right one catching a few stray drops to fling down into the sink.

She tries not to wonder too often.


	4. Woman's Best Friend- Sakura, Kiba

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't something Sakura really wanted others to know about.

Sakura had a _thing_. It wasn't a thing that was commonly known, she tried her hardest to hide it from those she knew. It wasn't easy but she managed. She was actually quite proud of how well she'd kept her secret in a village full of nosy ninja. To date, there were only two people in the village who knew about it.

The first was Kakashi, who would have probably found out about it through observation if she hadn't reluctantly fessed up to it first. At least that was the reasoning she used to force herself to tell him. It had been utterly mortifying, and the pervert hadn't helped by calling her kinky afterwards. Chasing him around for the rest of the day had helped her turn most of it to anger though.

The second person who knew about it was Kiba, and he'd found out quite by accident. Yes, it was accidental. She refused to acknowledge that he'd found out because she became careless enough for him to stumble across her. Kiba had looked at her oddly before shrugging and calling her crazy. She'd kindly returned the favor by healing his cracked skull before he woke up.

It worked out somehow. Between Kakashi and Kiba, Sakura managed to keep herself satisfied. 

"Dammit, Sakura!" Kiba growled in annoyance, kicking at one of her feet. "Gimme my dog back!"

"No!" Sakura stopped cooing long enough to say. Akamaru, tongue lolling and bushy tail sending dust up with each thump, gave a short bark of agreement. "See!? Little Cutie wants to stay with me!"

The minor annoyance dealt with Sakura went back to scratching the dog's ears. Unlike some of Kakashi's nin-dogs, Akamaru didn't mind her being around as long as there was ear scratching and a good belly rub in it for him.

"Yeah? Well 'Little Cutie' is a fucking traitor!" Kiba glared down at them, before flopping down onto his back. "Seriously, you need to get your own dog."

Sakura and 'Little Cutie' easily ignored the sulking boy in favor of a nice game of fetch.


	5. Reality Check- Kiba, Kankurou

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiba doesn't think he likes Sunagakure very much.

The Hidden Village of Sand was strange.

It was completely brown, there was no color anywhere as far as he could see just different shades of brown. Light brown, dark brown, off brown, streaked brown, spotted brown. There were probably names for all the browns he'd seen, and Shino could have easily named them, but all Kiba saw was brown. Even _black_ was brown here. It hadn't taken very long for all of Kiba's nice black shirts to attract that strange chalky dust that seemed to be everywhere, and turned them all a grayish brown. Repeated washings of the shirts hadn't helped, and he'd eventually given up on it. 

He hadn't given up on getting Akamaru back though. Despite the fact that the pup was almost entirely gray after a week even though Kiba'd bathed him just about every day. It didn't help that he'd roll around in the sand after every bath despite Kiba's best efforts to stop him.

The food was strange too. It had more oil and spices than any food should have. It made Kiba pause more than once before diving in like he usually would. The smell curling sharply in his nose as a precursor as his guts started clenching and his stomach was as close to cast-iron as one could get. The bread served with every meal helped a lot. Though even that was strange, in a good way. It was a large and flat bread that hardened the longer it was in the air. Kiba liked to let it sit for a while so that it was nice and crunchy when he got around to eating it.

The people though were what was really strange about the Village. It wasn't just limited to the shinobi either, _everyone_ in the village was a little strange. They always had that holier-than-thou attitude that really grated on his nerves. He couldn't even ask for the time without getting stared down from some almighty throne. If it weren't for the fact that Kiba damn well knew the Hokage would personally kick his ass, he would've screwed up the diplomatic part of his mission the first time a _civilian_ vendor had spat in his direction.

Really, it was like Suna didn't want to keep up the treaty between their villages. Which was probably the case since they always paired him up with Gaara. Well, him and whatever Leaf representative came along. Kiba honestly couldn't think of a better way to put a peace treaty to a quick death than to let a psychotically powerful psycho escort the diplomats around. 

It was a miracle that Kiba was still alive, but he had the disturbing feeling that was mostly due to the fact that Gaara was testing out a new form of killing. Probably trying to see if he could drive Kiba to suicide by not saying one single word to him, and just staring at him all damn day long.

He was damned if he was going to let all of the strangeness get to him though. The Hokage had given him this mission for some reason that must've made sense to her, and he wasn't about to go back and tell her he'd failed. Kiba could play nice for a few months. Even if the people were unpleasant, the food was strange, the dust stuck to everything, and creepy Gaara followed him everywhere.

He was so determined to ignore it all that it took him half a day to realize it wasn't happening anymore.

Kiba stopped abruptly causing Kankurou, his temporary escort, to stop as well. It took a minute for his mind to catch up to what was happening around him. No, what _wasn't_ happening.

All the stares, fearful and hateful, were gone. No one looked at him twice now and whispers didn't spring up as he passed. Children didn't run away and the old women who'd spat in his path before didn't even look at him twice. 

Shino liked to call Kiba an idiot, and he knew he wasn't close to be as smart as his teammates. But he wasn't a moron. Kiba could put together a few clues to form a clear picture.

The behavior he hated so much was gone, because it wasn't about him he realized. It wasn't that he was a ninja of the Leaf who had beaten them so badly. 

It was Gaara. 

Kiba shut his mouth and turned back to Kankurou. The jounin was giving him an odd look. "Why," Kiba frowned and tried to put words to his confusion, "Why do they treat Gaara like that?"

"That?" Kankurou parroted back with a smirk. "You wanna be more specific than 'that,' mutt?"

Kiba growled lowly and gestured around them, "The people. They glare, run, and- and they talk!" 

He realized he wasn't being very helpful, but he really couldn't put it into better words. Fortunately the other nin seemed to have gotten his point.

"You're just realizing that now?" Kankurou laughed. "How dumb are you?"

"Shut up," Kiba snapped back. "I thought it was just me. Cause you know I'm an outsider and all."

Kankurou shook his head and continued to laugh. It wasn't a very pleasant laugh. It was harsh and full of bitter anger, "Simply put, dog boy, they're afraid of him."

Yeah, he could see that. Anyone who wasn't at least a little afraid of Gaara was either incredibly stupid or named Uzumaki. Not that either of those two groups could be considered separate. Gaara was a freaky guy who you really didn't want to meet in a dark alley, or any sort of alley for that matter. Hell, you were usually just better off not meeting him at all.

Gaara was insane. Kiba didn't know what else he could call a person that never slept. He knew how he got after a day of not sleeping, he couldn't imagine what an entire lifetime of not sleeping had done to Gaara. He killed quickly and without feeling, never giving anyone warning. He almost never talked. Not even to tell the Leaf nin to shut up, a feat that considerably impressed Kiba since he'd spent the past few months doing nothing but babble at him. Most people would've cracked after a week. 

Probably good that Gaara hadn't or Kiba might've gone through some cracking of his own. And he'd really like to hear the explanation behind Gaara's blood line one of these days. 

"Well," Kiba said, "that sucks."

Kiba walked on taking his time to look at the city now that the citizens weren't scrambling for cover. He walked two feet before he realized that Kankurou wasn't beside him. The Leaf nin turned and found the other had stopped, face screwed up like he'd just eaten a lemon or something. Kiba frowned, "What?"

Kankurou looked at him and shook his head. The puppeteer slowly sank to his knees and placed his head in his hands shoulders shaking. Alarmed, Kiba took a few steps forward before he heard the first laugh.

Kankurou laughed loud and long. Peals of laughter that shook the his frame like something was hysterically funny. Food vendors looked out of their stalls and people went out of their way to avoid them. 

Kiba stood frozen and watched the nin with morbid fascination. He didn't know what it was about what he had said that set Kankurou off on a minor breakdown, and he wasn't going to risk his life to find out. Slowly the laughter dried up and Kankurou regained control of himself.

"What was that about?" Kiba asked warily.

Kankurou looked up and solemnly said, "It does suck."

Kiba knew he was missing something, that he didn't know the full story behind what was going on. Which was perfectly fine by him. He had a feeling that if he did he'd feel more horrified as he started to laugh with Kankurou.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I was playing around with outsiders not knowing a whole lot about Gaara and his abilities other than they were terrifying when I wrote this.


	6. Mob Rule- Gaara, Sunagakure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People made no sense to him.

It's hard to understand the world. 

No. It's hard to understand _people_. The world was orderly and followed a set pattern that, while not always predictable, could at least be depended on. People on the other hand were neither predictable nor dependable.

It's a fact that Gaara had come to accept. Acknowledging it helped him deal with the --frequent-- times when he badly misjudged a person. 

Or an entire _village_.

Gaara looked up at the messenger trying to figure out where he went wrong this time, "They want what?"

It had taken Gaara two weeks to convince Baki to take the mantle of Kazekage. His former sensei had not wanted to even listen to his reasons at first, and even after convincing him to _listen_ Gaara had to fight hard to get Baki to accept it. Which he very reluctantly did, eventually.

It had taken three days after that for Temari to accept the change. Two of those days had been spent keeping her from murdering Baki, and convincing her that it was all Gaara's idea.

Another five days were spent getting Kankurou to _calm down_ and disband the group he'd gathered for an impromptu coup. (Though so far, nothing anyone has done or said has stopped him from blaming --frequently and loudly-- Baki for Gaara's decision.)

It had taken another two days of solid talking and assurances from Gaara himself before _that_ group was willing to accept the change in power and disarm themselves. The amount of weaponry they'd gathered in that short time was...impressive to say the least.

Six days after that, the Anbu guards following Gaara reluctantly accepted that he wasn't their Kazekage anymore, but refused to leave him unprotected. (It's an ongoing debate between himself and them, but Gaara isn't sure he ever will win this one.)

Given all of those problems almost two months passed before the rest of the village were finally informed of Gaara's abdication in favor of a stronger Kazekage. A full two months of constant, private talking and assurances that did absolutely nothing to prepare Gaara for the sheer chaos that followed the public announcement.

The entire council was being held _hostage_.

Gaara stared at the messenger from Baki --no, the _Kazekage_ \-- but the jounin didn't waiver or correct his words. "Repeat yourself."

"The people have demanded your reinstatement, Ka- sir," the messenger was one of the people Gaara had to personally reassure in the first month, and was doing a very poor job of hiding his grin. "They are perfectly willing to do anything necessary to achieve their goals. Sir."

"What does B-" Gaara frowned at the slip. "What does the Kazekage propose?"

The jounin's smile widened and he produced a scroll. A very familiar looking scroll, it looked a lot like the one he'd given to Baki two months ago. Though it was easy to see that the ink on this one was still wet, "He's already given up his position and reinstated you, Kazekage. Baki suggests you free the council yourself."

An almost smug vibe was coming from the shadows his guard occupied. Not even a year ago the news of his abdication would have been met with a celebration. Ink smeared across his fingers as he rolled the scroll up. It just proved once again how unpredictable people were. 

He would never fully understand them.

"Fine," Gaara stood up, ignoring the guards that appeared and the salute the messenger sketched. He could only hope they'd return the favor in ignoring the heat washing across his face. "I'll inform the people of the change."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slotted sometime after Gaara was returned to his village.


	7. Trouble- Kiba, Akamaru

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some days there really was no point in behaving.

The scent of food drifting into the class was enticing. Kiba did his level best to ignore it, and actually tried to concentrate on taking notes for once. As boring as the lecture was he couldn't afford another detention. His mom had finally gotten fed up with it and was threatening to ground him during the upcoming festival. Kiba ignored the rumbling of his stomach and kept his eyes on Iruka.

Akamaru, however, had no plans to act any different than usual. The scent of food had perked the pup's interest, and he squirmed around on top of Kiba's head demanding to know when he would be fed. When no immediate answer was given the pup squirmed off of Kiba landing on the floor with a thump loud enough to draw the attention of the whole class. 

Ignoring Kiba's hissed commands to stay still, Akamaru ran to the open window and started barking. Demanding that they find that nice scent even as Iruka's face turned a livid red. Kiba mentally shrugged deciding that if he was going to get a detention anyway he might as well make the best of it.


	8. Growl- Naruto, Akamaru, Kiba

Naruto growled, glaring into his opponent's dark eyes. Akamaru refused to give in and growled right back adding a ferocious head shake in for good measure. Naruto dug into the ground with his knees and pulled back. Teeth tightening on the frisbee to keep it from getting yanked away as Akamaru continued to shake his head from side to side.

Kiba, tears running down his face, gasped for sorely needed breath before starting on another howling bout of laughter.


	9. Gutted- Sakura

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It hurts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Sasori fight.

Gut wounds are one of the worst wounds to receive simply because it takes longer for a person to die from one. 

Sakura knows this, she's seen more than a few shinobi dragged into the hospital with both hands pressed tight to the weeping wound. Most had passed out before the medics got to them, and the few that hadn't were quickly knocked out before they could start screaming. She knows they hurt, has intimate knowledge of how people react to them, but she isn't prepared for how much it actually _hurts_. 

The blade is fine and she barely feels it slide in. The pain did not even start until Sasori stops pushing and the sword _jerks_. And that- that is beyond anything she's felt before. 

A wave of pain unfurls from her abdomen, tearing its way up her spine and spreading through her whole body. She can feel every inch of the blade piercing her, twisting slightly to tear her body a little more. She can see the organs, veins, and muscles that are being destroyed. Her chakra flowing automatically to try to heal the damage before her brain can even begin to realize how fatal the wound is.

The metallic taste of blood fills her mouth. Her teeth ache from keeping the full throated scream sealed behind them and Sakura has to force herself to ignore it. Ignore the pain and grab the blade with both hands. It's another jerk of the blade and another wave of pain every bit as harsh as the first. She feels her knees weaken and only the knowledge that it will hurt more if she falls keep her feet under her. 

She almost isn't able to even do that, but the poison has already begun to spread through her. The numbing effect is what she'd been counting on to allow her to buy a few more moments for the older woman to gather herself. As the poison speeds through her she hopes it will be enough.


	10. Blood Makes Noise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Title taken from the song by Suzanne Vega.

Blood always left a mark. Whether it be on a person or a place, it always left a stain.

Blood pools between fingers and sticks under nails. It soaks into hair and beads like sweat on skin. Water and soap will wash it off. A stiff brush and patience will get it out from under the nails. A hot shower with the right shampoo cleans the hair. It’s easy to get blood off the body, but it's impossible to get the blood stains out of the soul.

Blood stays on the hands, thicker and warmer than any liquid should be. It made lifting cups heavier and shakier than it should be. Blood collected in a person's eyes slowly coloring everything in its dark color until a person went mad. Blood stains a person making even the most angelic and saintly seem dark and forbidding. It cannot be detected on a person once washed, but its effects are plain to see in their eyes.

Blood pools on floors and sprays across walls. It darkens rocks and soaks into the ground. It dilutes in the whorls of water and beads like dew on leaves. It gleams dully in the sun, and shines ethereally under the moon. Floors and walls can be scrubbed clean with strong cleaners and stronger justus. Rocks can be burned clean and soil could be churned. Water is its own cleaner and leaves are easily cut off. The light of day is bright and hot making it easier to find and dispose of the dried flecks of blood. While the cool light of the moon shimmers off of what was hidden in the day.

Blood soaks into buildings giving them a life and presence not found in newer buildings. It gives life to the land pulling forth vivid life that can only come from the blood of the dead. Water runs dark and deep hiding its dangers and the victims that line the bottom of rivers. The bright sunlight makes it all look normal contrasting sharply with the knowledge that it isn't. The pale moon makes it all surreal casting shadows that look like memories.

Blood stains the world and haunts those who spill it.


	11. Burnt- Temari, Gaara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Temari had only turned away for a brief minute.

"Brat," Temari scowled down at her pile of blackened rolls. Gaara leaned against the kitchen wall and tried to look as innocent as he possibly could. She really didn't think it was fair that he not only pulled it off, but did so with an odd charm that was probably the reason why the old lady running the store down the street would insist on Temari take just a few more things for her family. "Alright, you've got a batch of burnt bread just for you. Now stop distracting me so I can make something Kankurou and I can eat."

Gaara smiled slightly and seemed to be considering it while she slid another pan into the oven. Temari set the small timer and this time, dammit, she was going to hold onto the damn thing. 

Several weeks ago she'd let a whole batch of bread burn, and she and Kankurou had spent the week picking out the only slightly burnt insides. They'd been somewhat relieved when Gaara discovered he liked it better burnt and had happily let him eat it all.

Unfortunately the brat had liked that arrangement a little too much. Now every week when she made bread Gaara would show up to do his best to distract her.

Temari squared her shoulders and stood so she could see both Gaara and the oven at the same time. He wasn't making it easy on her as he stood directly opposite from the oven, but her side vision had always been better than the boys gave her credit for. One twitch from him or the slightest change in the oven would instantly be seen. She'd learned her lesson when last week he'd used his sand to turn the oven dial up.

_Spoiled_ brat.


End file.
